Background Tutorial

Design team member Joyce Lawrence created this layout, "BFF", as an example for our                    September Sketch Challenge

Here's my take on that darling sketch.  The background was created with white cardstock, mask, stamp, ink, tea bag, water spray, glossy accents and the two colors spray mists from our kit. The glossy accent pebbles were accentuated with a light brown water color pencil.
I went a little overboard with those glossy accent pebbles, but I was having too much 

fun making them.

Joyce is nowgoing to show us how she created the background for this layout, using the September Kit, Fly Away, and items from her stash.

Supplies:
White Cardstock
Lindy’s Stamp Gang : Canna Lily Burnt Orange Starburst, and Smoky Sapphire Moon Shadow Mist
Script Stamp
Brown Ink
Crafter’s Workshop Medallion Mask or whatever you have in your stash
Glossy Accents
Waterbrush or Q-tips
Light Brown Watercolor Pencil
Jar lid or a bowl.
Water spray bottle
Tea bag

Step 1.  Here’s what your white card stock should look like after you have applied the mask/stencil .  You will need to start misting very lightly with your Starburst and in a few areas, and you will need to apply the Starburst heavier in other areas. Set aside to dry, or use your heating tool.  Once the paper has dried, lightly spray with water over the cardstock keeping some areas dry (you will need to preserve some of the hard lines from your original Starburst spraying). Again, set aside to dry.

Step 2.  Pour about a tablespoon of the Moon Shadow Mist in a jar lid or bowl, and add about two tablespoons of water to dilute the mixture.  Of course, if you wish your tea bag technique to be a darker tone, add less water, or more Moon Shadow Mist.  Saturate your tea bag in water then drop it in the lid or bowl of your mixture and swirl the tea bag around to pick up all the mixture.  Then hold the soggy tea bag up high over your cardstock paper and throw it down hard.  If you do this correctly, you will get those spatter marks from the tea bag.  Do this several times on the cardstock and refill your mist and water mixture as needed.  Keep in mind that you will want to have a lot of the white cardstock showing, so don’t go overboard with all the fun of throwing down the tea bag. Set aside to dry.

Step 3.  Ink up your script stamp and apply the stamp over various areas of the cardstock.  I normally keep some wet wipes close by to clean up the inked stamp when I want to reapply in various areas on the cardstock.

Step 4:  Making pebbles.  Using your Glossy Accents, carefully create circles with the product and set aside to dry according to the products instructions. I normally hold the product at an angle and get the point to touch the cardstock and just squeeze the product out until I get the size and shape of the pebble that I like.  Make sure the Glossy Accents dry thoroughly before you go on to the next step.

Step 5:  Enhancing the pebbles.  Using a light brown watercolor pencil, draw a complete circle as close to the pebble as you can get.  On the bottom side of the pebble, lightly apply a thicker coat of the pencil in a half moon shape.  When you’re done applying the watercolor pencil, take your filled water brush, or wet Q-tip and lightly go over the areas where you applied the watercolor pencil. The color should spread very nicely, and if you do this correctly, it will enhance your pebbles. You may choose to add more water to the area to soften the color if the color comes out too harsh.

Here’s a pic of the unfinished pebble:

Here’s a pic of the finished pebble:

Thanks so much, Joyce, for sharing your creative process with us!